My Anchor
by RedPanda2743
Summary: They won the final battle, but she did not return unscathed. Unable to bear the pain of staying in the past, she returned to her own time. Now she is attending a high school for the rich and beautiful, trying to keep her mind from swirling. Until she meets her anchor. Big brown eyes that lull her back into sanity. Maybe moving forward isn't impossible after all.
1. Prologue

It was getting late, the sun painted red and golden hues over the roofs of the village. As it began to kiss the horizon, a little boy's voice greeted the already worried townsfolk. "MOMMA! MOMMA!" He cried, sobbing into the elderly woman's kimono. His little body shook with each word. He fearfully pleaded into the chest of the woman he had come to think of as his grandmother. His mind was racing with thoughts of his adoptive mother facing Naraku, his movements were becoming more and more erratic. "Let me go! I need to help momma, she could be in trouble!" She simply shushed him in response.

"Hush yourself, little one. Your mother promised ye she'd return safely, did she not?" She patted the young fox on the back and rocked her body back and forth. It broke her heart to say those words when she herself had her own doubts. Kaede knew the foe his mother and the rest of his newfound family faced was powerful beyond her humble imagination. She sighed herself out of her fretful musings and continued consoling the worried kit. "Besides," she half-heartedly chuckled, "you are going to wake little Rin with all this fussing." This paused him mid-sob. His ginger hair swished as he turned his head to look at the girl curled up on the floor beside the warmth of the fire.

As if on cue, she shifted. He watched her as she rolled herself over, seeking comfort from her familiar face. Sensing the kit had calmed down, Kaede opened her arms to where he was no longer restricted and watched as he crawled toward his best friend. She gazed at the two until Shippo's breathing relaxed and his body was no longer tense with worry for his mother. She sighed. He was right to be worried. She could feel the energy in the air, even though the battle was purposely placed rather far away from the small village. The unmistakable warmth of Kagome's power clashed with the darkness that is Naraku viciously, both weakening, neither giving in. It filled the very air flowing through her lungs with growing unease. Kaede knew that worrying would do no good, however. It would only serve to upset the children, she had to be strong for them. She slipped into a meditative state, listening to the calming breath of the children and the crackling of the fire. The peaceful atmosphere within Kaede's hut didn't last very long. Her eyes snapped open when she felt it. The fox kit by her

side shot up, wide awake.

The energy changed. Shifted. Instead of light and dark dancing a twisted dance of death, swapping who has the upper hand, the victor was clear. Kagome's energy had dwindled to the brink of nonexistence, then surged outward in a final attack. She had won. The victory was hers, but her energy and lifeforce were dwindling.

Kaede looked down at her hand when she felt the much smaller paw of the fox kit grab her finger. She followed the paw up to its owner, only to be met with the petrified eyes of a child who fears being orphaned a second time. "My momma is gonna be okay... Right, Kaede?" He whispered though she didn't have time to respond.

Moments later, the piece of fabric hanging in the doorway was shoved aside as Kouga barged in with an unconscious Kagome in his arms. Her breaths came in short gasps and her armored priestess garb was torn and soaked in blood. Whether it was hers or not, no one in the hut could tell. His panicked eyes met the elder. Their silent, yet urgent conversation lasted only a few seconds. He gently laid her body down on the mat, kissed her forehead, and grabbed the children. Casting one last glance at the wounded woman, he took the screaming fox kit and the now very awake crying little girl and exited the hut.

Inside, Kaede moved the fabric of Kagome's clothes to asses the wound. 'Oh, child.' she mourned in her head for the girl she had learned to love so dearly, 'what a scar this will leave.'

...

Annoyed, frustrated, and tired. All words that could very much describe Haruhi Fujioka in this exact moment. Why?

She was trying to study. The key word is trying. Her exuberant father refused to let up his antics. His dancing and twirling her around the room was starting to give her a headache. He giggled as he swung her around easy as if she was made of feathers, gushing at the boys she would meet. 'What's so great about boys anyway?'

"Why aren't you EXCITED my dear?" He cried, setting her on the ground and then capturing her in a rib-shattering embrace. "Just think! All the handsome rich men, GUSHING over my darling daughter!" This rant when on and on. Seven minutes past and despite various complaints about lack of oxygen intake, he didn't let go. It wasn't until her body went limp, seemingly devoid of all life, that he finally set her down on the couch. Waltzing toward the door, he shouted words of farewell on his way to work. As she watched the door close behind him, she pondered his question. I'm not excited because I'm not trying to go to Ouran to date or be doted on by rich boys. I'm going to learn.'

She didn't know how, or what, but even she recognized how much she sounded like she was convincing herself of something. A touch of red dusted her nose. 'But who knows, maybe this year will be different.' …

…

'Nah.'

AUTHORS NOTE

I am only gonna say this in this chapter, but I do not own rights to either of these animes. They belong to their respective creators.

Hope you enjoyed!


	2. Chapter 1

"Kagome." A quiet voice called her. She did not turn around. "It is not your fault." She looked at the ground.

It was. It was her fault. She looked at the grave in front of her. She clenched her hands, feeling the familiar object digging into her skin. Arms wrapped around her waist. She didn't feel them. He was talking to her, but she didn't want him to be. She saw him die.

"You're not really here, are you?" She asked. She received no answer. She hadn't expected one. She turned away from the monument which stood for his life. She chuckled darkly to herself when no one stood behind her. Kagome's silver-haired love still lay dead underneath layers of dirt, sand, and stone. She walked away.

…

"Momma..? Momma, what's wrong?" She didn't hear him. She hasn't heard nor spoke in hours. A warm, aged hand placed on her cheek brought her back to the real world.

"Are you all right, child? You seem to be in your head, it's worrying your little one. And the rest of us." Kaede added. Kagoma looked down at the children. Shippo clung to her right arm while Rin held her left hand gingerly. They both looked to her with damp eyes. One pair held a soft, understanding worry and another panicked and upset. She let her gaze flow from her adoptive son to her body. Under the loose gray cloth draped over her shoulders, she felt bandages covering her neck to waist. They adorned her arms and pinched her skin on occasion. Following her arms her eyes found her fingers clenching a wooden spoon. She had been ladling out soup to serve to her family.

She was confused, just a few seconds ago she had been stepping away from the resting place of her fiance. "Kaede," She began to speak. Her words dragged on as she tasted them on her tongue, cautious. "I think I am going to lie down for a minute. Is that alright?" She glanced at the old woman's face, but the look of concern burned her retinas and filled her body with shame. She looked away.

Shippo whimpered as his mother picked him up, giving him one soft squeeze of reassurance and putting him down giving her room to stand. The three watched her limp with as much grace as she had over to her futon. She was young, no older than seventeen years. When she first fell down the well over two years ago she was childish. She was naive and weak. But she had potential. So much raw power swam through her body. Eventually, it had begun to peer through her skin, casting a barely noticeable pink light over her surroundings whenever she used them. It was sad to see the dull gray her skin had been reduced to. Her hair lost its shine and her eyes seem devoid of the life she had overflowed with all her years.

Their musings were interrupted as Miroku moved through the doorway, robes swishing as he walked. "Lady Kaede, Lady Kagome.." He looked at her and realize she was unresponsive again. Blue eyes stared past him, uninterested in anything once again. He sighed. "The last of the damages are being repaired. Lord Sesshomaru is on his way. He said he wishes to check on his ward." He met Rin's eyes. He sat down next to the fox kit and began speaking to Kaede about the repairs and the people still healing. The four of them ate in relative silence, waiting on the lord of the west to arrive.

…

They didn't have to wait long. They had barely finished their meal before they heard the familiar noise of someone entering the hut. Sesshoumaru's eyes swept the room, taking in every detail subtly. He noted the dirty bowls as well as the full bowl beside them. They had eaten, but Kagome had not. He had no doubt that getting her to eat since the battle was a challenge. "Rin." He spoke. His voice immediately taking control of the room.

"Yes, Lord Sesshoumaru?"

"You are well." It was not a question. It was an observation. He masked how relieved he was. He was not yet used to the idea that his ward was in the care of other humans.

"Yes, M'lord." She grinned up at him, hair bouncing as she walked over to him. She grabbed his hand. "I've missed you!"

"Hn." Her hair felt familiar and soft underneath his clawed fingers, and she basked in the attention. He was pleased to be spending time with the girl but he had other matters to attend to. "Monk." Golden eyes met grief-stained indigo ones. "You will escort me to the burial site of my half-brother."

"Of course, follow me please."

It was a short walk to the graveyard, a quiet one as well. Miroku was lost in memory as he stepped, his body walking toward the area he has traveled every day for the past three weeks. He stopped at a pair of graves near the front. A familiar, twin-tailed cat was curled up over one of the burial sites. On the other, beads of subjugation.

"This is Inuyasha's resting place, my lord." Sesshoumaru watched as the monk stepped to the other grave, marked with a giant boomerang, to mourn. Kirara mewled at Miroku before resting her head on her paws once again.

"The slayer was your intended." The demon lord had never really paid much attention to the monk and the slayer, but he knew that much thanks to the small amount of time the groups traveled together. The monk was silent for a moment.

"... Yes, my lord. We were beginning to discuss marriage and children just a few days before..." He trailed off, not wanting to bore the man presently in his company with his tale of loss.

The only answer he received was a subtle "Hn" from the demon to his right. They fell back into silence. It wasn't comfortable, nor was it tense. It was a necessary silence. Miroku mourned his loss while Sesshoumaru contemplated the life of his brother. He clicked his tongue in annoyance. He was becoming soft. All that time spent with his Rin and the priestess was wearing down the ice around his heart. It was unavoidable. Sighing unnoticeably, he turned and began to walk back to the hut that housed his ward. Miroku said once the last prayer for Sango and Inuyasha and followed behind him.

...

"Priestess." He sat with Kagome in the forest by Edo. He saw a bird flutter away from the tree he was leaning on out of the corner of his eye, he paid it no mind. His voice was stern as he looked into the face of what was one of the most powerful humans of this era. He inwardly growled when he received no answer. "You will speak to me." She met his eyes.

"Yes." She spoke slowly as if every syllable took more effort than she had energy left in her body. "What is it, Sesshoumaru?"

"Where is the Protector of the Jewel?"

"I am right here." He scoffed.

"No, the woman who sits before me is weak. I wish to know where the defeater of Naraku hides. The woman tamed enemies and purified those beyond saving. Where is she?" He saw her flinch. He did not care. He was tired of watching her go through the motions of life unknowing. It had been a few days over a month since the battle took place, yet she was too far in her own mourning to continue life. He didn't know why he cared. Perhaps it was because she was the strongest female in his pack, the alpha female. Perhaps it was because she was to mate his half-brother. There was a multitude of excuses he could make to himself, but the bottom line was that he cared. He would not allow her to waste away as she was.

She looked up at him, hurt. "What should I do, then, Sesh? How do I move on when everything I still have reminds me of all I lost? I'm failing as a mother to Shippo, failing as a friend to Miroku. I haven't even thanked Kaede! God, you're right…" She shuddered, feeling tears flood her eyes and fall down her sickly cheeks. Kagome hugged herself and sobbed. Rambling and breathing wildly, she listed everything she failed to do. He waited for her to calm herself. When he saw that her incoherent words had stopped and her panicked breaths to turn to quiet sobs, he answered her.

"Go home, Kagome." It was a simple answer to a complex question. "Make a wish on the jewel. Go home."


End file.
